Ken & Barbie
by sillym3
Summary: It wouldn’t be fun without a pink T-shirt, a Barbie, and a bullet wound. A story about survival, friendship, and secrets.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer **: Exercise my grammar and have fun with the characters are my main goals. So, no copyright infringement is intended by writing this.

**A/N **: I owe this to two awesome girls. Thank you for your help, don't know what to do without you.

**== KEN & BARBIE ==**

"That was just utterly stupid."

Greg threw his partner a sideway glance while trying to focus on the road ahead, "What was stupid?"

"Cody Gable, why would he stand still at a crime scene with a knife in hand and cocaine powder all over his jacket? He might as well have done the stabbing in the precinct; in front of the officers." Riley's complaint filled the air in the Denali along with the humid air of the night.

"Jumpsuit"

"Huh?"

"He was wearing a jumpsuit. Not a jacket." Greg hit the gas pedal with full force. "And we do not work for the 'Why'; it's the 'How' that matters to us." He repeated what he had often heard from his former supervisor.

"Well, if you want the 'How' part, I got a good explanation for you." Riley shifted on her seat, "Cody and the victim fought over the crack, somehow ripped open the package. All two thousands dollars worth of white powder was gone with the wind. Cody got mad and stabbed the victim." Now facing Greg, Riley leaned closer and whispered. "Now the interesting part is; why did Cody stay at the crime scene, holding the bloody knife. If I was the one who did the stabbing, I'd just bolt away from the scene."

Greg shrugged while taking a right turn at the intersection, "Shock maybe?"

"You heard David; the TOD was five to seven hours ago. Shock wouldn't take that long" Reclined back onto the seat, Riley tapped her chin in thought.

"I don't know maybe….,"

"Turn around; we need to get back to the crime scene!" Riley sat up straight on her seat.

"No Riley. We already went through everything. Let's just get back to the lab. Nick probably is already working on the evidence and wandering what is it that's taking us so long."

"No Greg. I left my cellphone." Riley looked behind as if she could see the device on the road. "I think I left it on the shelf that I was dusting, right after I called Nick."

Greg groaned. "Gees, you call yourself a level two but still left your belonging at a crime scene."

"I got distracted. Your T-Shirt is so sparkly that it blinds me." She eyed Greg's shirt. It was shocking pink, so shocking that the LVPD vest couldn't cover its shine. Riley swore she could see the T-shirt sparkle under the street light.

"I lost a bet, okay?" Greg took a U-turn. "You know what? A CSI level 1 left her cellphone at a scene before. She went back to retrieve it, alone."

"I've heard that before. One of spooky CSI stories right?" Riley pursed her lips, "The young and restless CSI went back to the scene and ended up slaughtered to death."

"Nah," Greg shook his head.

"So, she lost her eyeballs?"

"Nu uh"

"Kidnapped by an alien and never came back?"

"No…, she just..."

"Raped by gang members and killed with a hook?"

"No and you definitely have watched too many movies."

"So what has happened to this CSI?"

"Nothing, she just found another body."

"There's nothing horrible about that Greggo."

"Hey, watch the name calling!" Greg glared at the blonde CSI.

Riley smirked, really enjoying the conversation," What? You don't like Greggo?"

Still glaring, Greg threatened, "Call me that again and you get back to the scene on foot."

"I'm sorry," Riley batted her eyelashes, "Greggo"

Greg groaned, regretting his gentleman attitude. He should let Riley go back to the scene by cab or something. "I hope there's a man waiting for you with a hook there, Level two," He mumbled, getting himself a chuckle from Riley.

* * *

"Well, there really is a man waiting for me" Riley got out from the Denali, walking toward the officer in charge. The officer was sitting in the patrol car; a two-stories warehouse was in the background, complete with police lines all around. The warehouse was their current crime scene.

"Hi Charlie, where are your partners for tonight?" Greg greeted the officer while leaning to the car.

"Jamie and Bill have gone to get coffees and bagels. Is there anything wrong? I thought you had finished." Officer Charlie Gordon tipped his LVPD cap, while yawning widely.

"Nah, just some inexperienced junior CSI left her cellphone behind." Greg nodded toward Riley who was already walking to the warehouse.

"I heard that." Riley threw a look over her shoulder. "I'll just take a moment Charlie."

"Okay," Charlie waved to her and soon had an interesting conversation with Greg.

Charlie had just finished explaining his opinion on the economy crisis when Greg glanced at his wristwatch. He realized that he had been waiting for more than ten minutes, "What is taking her so long?"

"Girls…" Charlie rolled his eyes, "They're slow at everything. My wife is always…,"

"I'll go check on her." Greg cut Charlie's speech short and started walking away.

When he strode inside the warehouse, the smell of dust attacked his nostrils. There were several light bulbs that were still working. Their light illuminated the warehouse and made it easier for Greg to look around. The first floor was filled with cardboard boxes and Styrofoam, all haphazardly laid on the floor. The crime scene was on the second floor and Greg climbed the stairs slowly.

"Riley!" He called out then suddenly stopped in the middle of the stairs. The back door was slightly ajar and he knew it had been closed before. Knowing full well that no officers were guarding the back of the building he drew his gun out. "Riley!"

There was no answer and the building was suspiciously quiet. It only took him three steps to get to the second floor. "Riley!" he called again before hopping to the right, effectively avoiding the blood-stained floor. With his gun trained forward, he opened the door that led to a room where they had found the suspect.

"Charlie! Get in here!" He shouted with all his might. There, on the dusty concrete floor, laid Riley's body. She was on her chest and seemed unconscious. Her cellphone was broken, about two feet away from her hand. Greg looked to the right and to the left, making sure that no one was in the room.

"Riley! What happened?" He kneeled and scooped the younger CSI in his arms, patting her cheek to wake her. Riley opened her eyes slowly right when Greg started talking to dispatch. She tried to shift Greg's attention to the door, but he was too busy with his phone.

"Dispatch, This is C32, I need back up and ambulance in ….," Greg's words were cut short by a sudden hit on his neck. He fell forward, trapping Riley beneath his body. Someone was behind him and that someone definitely had a gun. Greg heard the familiar click of a trigger.

"Let go of the cellphone and the gun." Greg saw horror in Riley's eyes as he heard the order. He released the cellphone but tightened his grip on the gun.

"Let go of the gun!" A different voice was speaking this time. One foot kicked Greg's cellphone away and another foot stepped on his hand.

"Ouch," Greg didn't have any choice but to let go of his gun. "Wait! Wait! Let's talk" He tried to turn around. Before he had a chance to see their attackers, one of them kicked him in the face, sending him flat to the floor.

He grunted while Riley was trying to prop him up. "Greg! Are you okay?" her hand smoothed his hair back, inspecting the contusion on his head. "You're bleeding." She turned her attention to the attackers. "What the hell do you want?" She shouted at one of them, the one who didn't have any gun with him.

Her question went unanswered as Charlie stormed into the room. "Drop your weapon!"

The presence of the officer startled everyone, sending a wave of frantic movements. Greg scooted to reach for his gun but one of the attackers stopped him by kicking him again. He fell hard onto the shelves, tumbling aside. Riley tried to help Greg, but the other attacker fired a shot toward her, narrowly missing her leg. Tripping over her own foot, Riley fell on top of Greg, knocking him on his already contused head. He felt dizzy, the room spinning around him.

"Hey! I said drop your gun!" Greg heard Charlie's voice as he was trapped beneath one of the attackers. Even with his pounding head, Greg could see Charlie shooting the gun-totting attacker right on his ankle, making the man fall on his knee.

Then everybody was trying to get a hand on the gun. Everybody was shouting and moving, sending clouds of dust into the air. Greg felt the commotion get him dizzier. Then there was gunfire, followed by another one, and another one, before the room fell into a horrible silence.

"Riley," Greg, now on his back, reached for Riley who was lying beside him.

"I'm okay," Riley coughed before rising on her knees. She saw Charlie on the floor. Blood stained his uniform. "Officer Gordon!"

"Stay where you are!" One of the attackers, two guns in hands, stood in the middle of the room. His friend, leaning over the wall with his bleeding ankle, also held one gun in his shaking hands.

"Curtis, what have we done?" The bleeding-ankle guy asked his friend.

Greg laid still while observing the criminals. Judging by their postures and faces, they couldn't be a day older than twenty years old. Greg hissed, juvenile crime always ended horribly, he thought to himself.

"I don't know, this cop was shooting at you man. I just tried to save you. Larry gonna be mad at us for this. He might kill us." The other guy sighed. His hand, still holding the gun, messed his hair around. "And we haven't found the package yet."

"Why don't you just surrender? We can protect you from this Larry guy." Although she didn't quite catch the situation, Riley tried to negotiate.

"Shut up! No one can save us from Larry." Curtis glared at Riley then shifted his attention to his friend. "We can't leave them here," Curtis gestured to Greg and Riley. "Zach, bring them to the truck."

"Then what, Curt? It's bad enough that you've killed the cop." He took a wobbly step and hovered over Officer Gordon's body. "We might go to jail for this man, let's just walk away. I need something for this wound too, my ankle is killing me"

Having been silent for awhile, Greg chimed in from his position on the floor. "That's right Curtis. Don't get yourself into more trouble than you can afford." He wiped his brow, feeling his bleeding wound.

"Or you can just surrender; at least the sentence won't be too bad." Riley eyed Curtis, considering his mental state. They had been trained for this; luring the criminals to surrender was their best chance to get out from this situation.

"I said shut up!" Curtis slapped Riley with the side of the gun, instantly creating a bruise on the corner of her mouth.

"Hey!" Greg launched himself forward but was tackled by Curtis. He kicked Greg twice in the stomach before shouting at his friend.

"Tie them up Zach, use this wire." He yanked a loop of wire from the shelf. "Let's bring them and walk away from here. We can figure out what to do later."

Riley blinked; their chance to be saved had just been narrowed down by Greg's heroic action.

* * *

Soon, Greg and Riley were back to back, their hands tied together. Curtis had ordered them to walk in front of him. His guns trained to them, while Zach following them close with his limp leg. Together they got out from the warehouse.

They reached a gray rusty truck right when police sirens started ringing in the distance.

"Back up always comes too late right?" Riley tried to speak to Greg; his silence since he had got kicked made her uncomfortable. She couldn't see how he was doing now that they were tied against each other.

"I hope Charlie is okay." Greg mumbled, he knew his hope was far too high. He saw two bullet wounds across the officer's chest. Greg was simply entertaining himself.

"He'll be fine, he'll be fine." He heard Riley's whisper as they were loaded on the truck.

"Zach, you drive!" Curtis climbed in after them. "Don't think of doing anything stupid!" He warned the CSIs.

"Where to, Curt? Larry's?"

"No. Are you crazy? We need someplace safe." Curtis messed his hair again, "Your house! Right, your house. Your parents won't be back until Monday right?"

"No way man. I'm not bringing them to my place. Let's just bring them to Larry's." Zach flinched as he hit the gas pedal. His ankle was definitely aching.

"We haven't got the rest of the package yet idiot. Keep them in your garage while we're searching for it. As long as we get the package, Larry will be happy dealing with these two without involving us."

"Right, right." Zach nodded, "My place it is."

Crammed into the seat, Riley could feel that Greg was hunching down. "Greg, are you okay?"

He didn't answer her.

"Greg? Curtis, what's happening to him?" she demanded an explanation. She was facing the driver window and couldn't see what was happening behind her. However she could feel the weight of Greg's body pulling further in the opposite direction.

"Man, I think I kicked him too much." Curtis' words were stabbing Riley's ears, sending shivers down her spine.

"What?" She tried her best to take a look over her shoulder. She saw nothing but Greg's shoulders.

"He's bleeding, man," Curtis poked Greg with one of the guns, "I think he's passing out."

"No!" Panic started flooding Riley's mind. She wriggled hard, trying to see her friend. "Greg! Greg! Stop this car! Stop! Pull over!"

The car slowed down as Zach hit the brakes. However, Curtis was having none of that. "Zach! What are you doing! Don't stop!" He glared over Greg's slouched head, holding the gun against Riley's head. "Are you trying to impress this woman?"

"No Curt," Zach gulped, "I just don't want you to kill another cop."

"I need to see Greg!" Riley demanded. "Zach, please slow down. I need to check if he's alright." Knowing that Zach was the weak link of the team, she pleaded. "Zach, you don't want to hurt another policeman. What would your parents think if they knew about this?"

"Aaaargh!" Riley's words triggered a burst of anger from Curtis. He released a shot. A bullet ran through the driver window, missing Riley's temple and Zach's nose by a mere inch.

"I said shut up!" He hit Riley hard with his fist. "Keep driving Zach! The cops are searching for us!"

Seeing stars behind her lids, Riley whispered to Greg. "Greg, please wake up, Greg." Greg didn't answer her. Riley started to feel fear engulfing her.

She shook her head, trying to get a better view and cleared her mind. The truck was entering a suburban area. Despite the swarming houses, no one was outside, considering it was probably only four in the morning. Riley thought of the advantage if she could shout and wake people up. Some people might have heard the last gunfire anyway. She took a deep breath.

"Don't even think of that." A click of a trigger echoed in her ears. "Shout and I'll blow your partner's head!"

Riley gulped down. She knew Curtis meant every word.

The rest of the drive was mostly accompanied by silence. Riley tried to shift her body every now and then, her poor attempts to wake Greg up. After a couple of miles, Curtis came out with this bright idea of blindfolding Riley so she couldn't see where they were going. Eyes covered with a foul-smelling scarf, Riley could only hope for the best. Please, don't let anything happen to Greg, she pleaded in her mind.

TBC?

Thank you for reading, and as always, Reviews and comments are loved:)


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer : Please refer to chapter one.

A/N: She who shall not be named (no, she's not Voldemort's step-sister) have done so much for this fic; so much that words couldn't start to articulate my gratitude.

* * *

== KEN & BARBIE ==

Chapter two

It seemed like hours had passed by before the truck slowed down. Riley was already feeling sore for sitting too long.

"Get out of the car!" Curtis's voice was morbidly familiar to her now.

There was no advantage in holding back her sarcasm "I want to but I can't. My friend's passing out, remember?" Riley hadn't succeeded in waking Greg up.

"Zach, go get some water!"

"Why me?" Riley heard Zach let out a frustrated grunt. Finally, Riley thought, the underdog showed a sign of resistance.

"Because if I leave you with this blonde you'll end up licking her shoes."

"My ankle's hurt!" Zach protested again. Riley thought about giving Zach applause if only her hands weren't tied.

"Yeah, and my head is pounding! There, get the water from the sewer."

Riley bit her lip. Sewer water and Greg's open wounds weren't a perfect match.

"Greg! Wake up!" She shook her body back and forth. "Greg, come on!" she tugged him with her hand. The wire was cutting into her wrist, the abrasion biting into her skin, but she just ignored the pain.

She gained nothing from the pain. Water splashed behind her, wetting her back and soaking her vest. Curtis or Zach had poured some water down onto Greg.

She heard Greg gasping and moaning. Despite their current predicament, she was glad to hear his voice.

"Wha….?" The word slipped unfinished from Greg's mouth.

"Get out!" Curtis yelled again.

Riley felt Greg's slow movement, tugging their binds. She carefully shifted backward. Her feet barely touched the ground when Greg's weight dragged her down.

"Greg!" They toppled onto the ground. She was on top of him. "Are you okay?"

"Ugh," Struggling to get to his feet again, Greg moaned. "I think I have been shot…"

"Oh my God! What? Where?" Riley stuttered.

"Geez. Cut out the drama!" Someone grabbed the scarf from her head. Riley noticed that they were standing in front of a house. A two-story house, its color was disguised by the light of the dawn. Some parts of the wall were abraded, revealing bricks and concrete. The grass was dry, the yard was filled with rusty iron pipes and trash and the foul smell that was invading her nose was similar to the smell of the scarf. It seemed like the house was some kind of recycling area or garbage dumpster.

"Move!" Curtis held the gun barrel against Greg's temple while Zach opened the front door. Awkwardly, Riley followed Greg's steps.

A short trip upstairs brought them to a small room. Just like the rest of the house, it was also scattered with things. Clothes, socks, shoes, posters, pillows, and thrash were all around. Nearly all the bed was covered by clothes. Riley saw a container of Chinese food on top of the drawer and wondered if she could find maggots in it. She sighed; it definitely wasn't a woman's room.

"To the corner!" Curtis waved his gun to one corner that was also filled with clothes. "Zach, tie their feet!"

Slowly, Riley and Greg lowered themselves in the corner. Zach secured Riley's feet with a long piece of cloth first then moved to do the same with Greg's.

"Don't try anything stupid!" Curtis warned them again before practically dragging Zach outside the room.

Her hands and feet were tied so Riley nudged Greg with her elbow. "Are you okay?"

"My stomach is bleeding. I think there are some fragments of the bullet inside." He answered hoarsely.

"It's bad, isn't it? You were unconscious for hours."

"Not really. I woke up sometimes. Just didn't want those punk kids to be alarmed."

"What? And you didn't even talk to me? I was scared to death in that damned truck"

Riley snapped.

"I'm sorry. I was just trying to figure out where they would take us. If they had known I was up, they would have blindfolded me as well."

"Oh, right, sorry." Riley backed down. "At least you could have elbowed me or something…Given me a sign that you were okay…"

"And missed the fun? It's _kinda_ cute to hear you panic." Greg chuckled, although it made his stomach hurt like hell.

Riley nudged him again, sharply this time.

"Ouch!"

"Sorry, it's _kinda_ cute to hear you in pain." Riley smiled bitterly, "We need to get out of here, you think we can shift around, find something to untie us?"

"I think we have to wait. They're still outside." Greg leaned to the wall and took a deep breath. "I think I know where they have taken us." When he exhaled, a sharp pain stabbed his right side. There was definitely a bullet or its fragments in his wound, and thanks to Curtis's kicks, it got deeper inside.

"We took a right turn at the Summerlin intersection, then twice to the right, and once to the left after a green-roofed mini market. I couldn't read the street name and the number of the house, but the closest neighbor is about ten yards away." He looked down, spotting his pink T-shirt that was stained with blood. He regretted his decision; he shouldn't have taken off his bulletproof vest outside the warehouse. "I worked a scene a couples of blocks from here last year. I think this area is called Grayhill or something"

"Okay," Riley nodded and felt stupid for it, because Greg definitely could not see her. "I think I heard that they want to find a package for Larry first. It must be the rest of the cocaine."

"We've searched the whole warehouse Riley, there's no other package of crack." Greg huffed, clearly exhausted.

"Well, Cody Gable and the victim had torn one package. If Curtis is right, there is at least another package in the warehouse. Maybe Cody has hidden it somewhere."

The door burst open as Curtis slipped inside. "No Zach, one of us must stay here while the other's searching for the package!" His high-pitched voice rang inside the small room.

Zach, slipping in with his newly bandaged ankle, shrugged. "I can't go back to the warehouse man. It must be filled with cops."

"Did I tell yo te u that I want you to get back to the warehouse again? Do you think I'm stupid? You heard the TV. They caught Cody with a package; only a package! There's no other package in the warehouse. Cops are good, man. They work through and through. When they say no package it means no package." Curtis spat his words while walking around inside the room, nearly stepping on Riley's foot. "Cody must have kept it somewhere else. That damned kid!" He kicked a pile of boxes on the floor.

"So, where's the other package man? Larry's gonna kill us if we can't get it back. I told you not to let your step-brother have the crack. We should have delivered it ourselves."

"Shut up Zach! Let's just think" Curtis sat on the edge of the bed." Cody wouldn't keep it in our house, too risky. What about his girlfriend? Karen? Kristy?"

"It's Kirsten man. I know her house, we can go there. Maybe she knows something."

"Yeah, yeah." Curtis nodded, "You go, I'll keep an eye on them" His eyes met Riley's. "In case this blonde tries to run away."

"Man… I'm scared." Zach looked away, as if to hide his embarrassment. "Why can't we just go together? We can lock them in the bathroom. I had locked in my brother once; he couldn't get out of it all day long. "

That was how Riley and Greg ended up in a small two by two bathroom. Greg was facing the toilet while Riley faced the shower. They heard the sound of the truck's engine fade away, sign that both men who had dragged them inside had gone.

"Now what?" Riley sighed, "There's hardly anything sharp in here."

"How about those plastic shelves?" Greg glanced up while sensing his voice weakening. The pain in his abdomen was killing him.

"I've checked it, just a dirty soap bar."

Greg inhaled, feeling a little bit lightheaded. He felt cold, really cold. "Riley, let's just rest a bit. I'm sleepy." He exhaled slowly, releasing the stabbing pain bit by bit.

Sensing that something was off, Riley looked over her shoulder to catch a glimpse of Greg. "Greg, are you okay?" She asked the question a lot although she already knew the answer. He was shot in his abdomen. How could Greg be okay with a bullet digging inside his stomach?

"I'm just… tired, cold. Let me catch a quick nap first."

Riley could feel Greg's body slouched down against hers.

"Greg! Don't sleep!" She was afraid he would never wake up again once he surrendered to the pain. "Let's just talk okay? Okay?"

A mumble was his only answer.

"Greg, please…" Riley turned her head around, scanning the room for any useful gadget to cut the binds around them. "How about your shirt, how did you get such a hideous one?"

Greg chuckled weakly and Riley sighed in relief.

"I told you I lost a bet." His words were barely a whisper.

"To whom?" Riley spotted a window to their right side and the rusty pipe of the shower, they had two options.

"Sara." His body slouched further. "She always… she always beats me at online chess."

She grimaced; it was so Greg to get that shocking-pink nightmare over a game.

"Greg we need to stand up."

"Ugh, I don't think I can do that."

"Of course you can. You have to." Riley encouraged him. "See that window on our right side? We need to break it."

"How?" The prospect of getting away seemed to energize Greg a bit.

"Just stand up okay." Riley propped herself up against Greg, but stumbled to the floor. The bind on her feet made the task more difficult. "I think we need to stand up at the same time."

"Okay," Greg inhaled deeply, gathering his strength or what was left of it. "In three; one, two, three."

Together, they were standing in the middle of the bathroom. Riley eyed the glass pane skeptically. It seemed so thick.

"I think we need to untie ourselves first" Greg offered, somehow sounding pessimistic. "So we don't have to fall out there heads first. It's pretty high."

"Yeah, bad plan." Riley huffed, she leaned on her side against the wall and Greg followed suit. His breath was labored.

"I need to sit," Greg mumbled, slouching again, but Riley jerked their body up, using their bound wrists to tug Greg up.

"No Greg, we need to stay up, we need to get out." She knew she needed to distract him from his pain. Think about a topic Riley, she mentally slapped herself. "So this Sara that you were talking about; is she the Sara that Mandy keeps telling me about. Grissom's Sara?"

"Yeah," Greg leaned onto her body.

"What is going on between you two? Or should I ask, what was going on?" She had heard the gossip. About a certain former Lab rat who had a crush on his mentor. She couldn't help her curiosity.

"Nothing, she is my friend."

"I see," She smiled while eyeing the rusty shower pipe. If they could break the pipe, it could be useful. They could yank the cloth around their feet against it.

"It's true. We're friend." Greg sounded irritated. "How about you, I know nothing about you."

"Come on. No one talks about me around the water cooler? I thought I was popular" She looked at the pipe again, calculating their next move. Whatever they wanted to do next would have to be the right thing. "We need to move closer to the shower." She shifted but Greg made no movement.

"Greg!" She panicked. Was he unconscious again?

"Let's play secrets trading." Greg spoke between ragged breaths.

Riley was shocked, they were in a life or death situation and he wanted to play a game. "Greg!"

"Come on. Entertain me." He leaned further to her gathering all his strength and his will.

"Fine, you first."

"'Kay. I'm in love with Sara."

"Gees, a secret is something that no one else knows Greg. Everybody in the Lab knows you fell for her."

"They think I was crazy for her, admiring her. Not in love. I never admitted this toaAA another person before. Sometimes I think I'm still in love with her. I know she's not for me. She made it clear a long time ago and I'm happy for her and Grissom. I just wish things were different between us." Greg knew he was rambling. His body was getting colder; it was probably his last chance to ramble his heart out anyway.

Riley felt surprised. It must be hard for him to confess such a thing to a stranger. They might have gained each other's trust as co-workers, but what he had admitted was best confessed to a best friend. To someone that knew Greg inside out, not to an inconsiderate girl like her.

"Your turn. Then we can walk, shift or skip or whatever to the shower." Greg interrupted her thought.

'Hmmm." She tried to recall some of her secrets, "I collect Barbies."

"You're kidding. You're not a Barbie-collector kind of girl." Greg started to move his feet, pushing Riley closer to the shower.

She made sure their every shift was slow and careful. She didn't want to exhaust the wounded man. "See, that's a huge secret. I have like dozens of them in my place. I love to dress them and keep them in their boxes. For a grown up like me, it sounds psychotic, isn't it?"

She stopped near the rusty pipe, lowered their body slowly so the pipe was trapped between their shoulders. "We need to break this pipe." She started pushing with her shoulder.

"It's not psychotic, just weird yet a suitable hobby for a psychiatrist's daughter." Greg eyed the pipe too, suddenly understanding Riley's get-out plan. "However, your Barbie secret does not trump my secret." He also pushed with his shoulder, nudging the pipe back and forth. "The trade was unfair," he whined playfully.

"Fine." Riley was happy to hear his playful tone. It meant that Greg was in a good mood, even when his body was weak. "Once we get out of here safely, I'll tell you my biggest secret and that will surely beat your sappy story.

Greg growled, "My unrequited love is never sappy. It's heartbreaking, melancholic, colossal, and…" His words stopped as the pipe finally broke into two pieces. One piece was dangling over them and the other L-shaped piece was sticking out from the wall. "Yes, we did it. Now what?"

"Ummm. We could loop our feet around the pipe and yank the cloth."

"Can you do it first, I'm tired"

"Okay we need to turn around, just … just don't fall asleep." They shifted and once Riley was facing the broken pipe she lifted her feet and looped them around the pipe. She tugged and yanked, trying to loosen the knots of the cloth. After her fifth attempt, she could feel the fabric around her feet loosening.

"It's working," she exclaimed and slowly freed her feet from the binds, "Come on Greg, you can do it too!"

"Great, my turn." Greg undid the knots on his feet faster, being cheered by Riley. Soon they both were standing again, this time with their feet free.

"Now the hands," Riley brought their tied wrists to the side, trying to loop the wire around the pipe.

"No! No! No!" Greg stopped her. "We can't yank the wire. Unlike rope, it will only tighten. We need to cut it. Use the edge of the broken pipe." The last word barely slipped out from his mouth when he felt dizzy. It seemed like the room was turning on its axis. He wobbled and fell to the linoleum floor.

"Greg!" Riley propped her body up so she didn't fall onto him. "Greg! Wake up! Damnit Greg!"

"Ugh," Greg sucked a breath, "I don't think I can do it anymore." Blood was seeping out from his stomach every time he exhaled the air from his lungs.

"Yes Greg, you can, you have to!" Riley eyed the blood-stained floor in horror. Greg's bleeding was definitely getting worse.

"Riley, I can't." The pleading in his voice chilled Riley's body.

"Okay." She took a deep breath. "Okay Greg, you stay still. I…" She shook her head. This wasn't the right time to panic. "I'll try to cut the wire myself. Just... just sit down okay, so I won't fall to the floor."

Greg didn't answer, but he woke up with a grunt.

Once they were steady, Riley tilted their tied hands and tried to shift the wire against the sharp edge of the broken pipe. She missed at the first and second try.

"Third time's the charm, right Greg?" She asked only to make sure that he was still with her.

"Huh uh," Greg answered.

She managed to hit the right spot at the third try. "Yeah! Greg, I did it!" The wire was stuck on the pipe now. She moved the wire from side to side, using what little space between her hands and Greg's, grinding it against the rusty edge. The friction caused the wire to dig deeper into their skin.

Greg moaned, "Riley, you cut our wrists…"

"Sorry Greg," She could feel their blood seeping to her fingers, "I have to." Tears welled up in her eyes, some of them were because of her pain, and some more were because of Greg's. It broke her heart that she was adding more pain on top of his other injuries. When the pain in Riley's wrists became unbearable, the wire finally broke.

"Oh God," she slumped back onto Greg, while untangling their hands. Once her hands were freed, she turned around and grabbed Greg by the arms.

His eyes were half closed, his face was pale and his lips were blue. The once shocking-pink shirt was half red now. The waist of his jeans was sticky with blood.

"Oh my God." She tried to push her palms against Greg's wound to stop the bleeding.

"We… need… to get out," Greg spoke between coughs.

"Yeah," She stood and tried to yank the door open, but it didn't even budge. To her horror, she heard the far-away sound of an engine. "Shit, they're back!"

Riley sprinted to the window. She could see the gray truck, making its way to the house, leaving dust trails behind. She turned around, looking up and down. She and Greg needed to get out before Zach and Curtisreached reached the house, and she needed to find a way to do it.

Her eyes averted to the toilet then to the window. She could use it to break the glass pane. Despite the dirty appearance, she hugged the porcelain and yanked it, trying to take it off the floor. There was no such luck; it was bolted on the floor.

Riley eyed the window again, measuring the thickness of the window pane in her mind. Could she break it without breaking her bone? Would the window break easily? She asked herself.

Preparing herself for the worst, she started attacking the window. She bumped the window with her shoulder. Her body was banging against the glass pane but nothing happened. Her efforts seemed fruitless until she saw Greg standing beside her. His palm pressed onto the wall, supporting himself, while his other hand was holding his abdomen.

"You look busy, need help?" With her glassy eyes, Riley spotted his teasing half-smile.

"Yeah, yeah, of course" She nodded while brushing her tears with the back of her hand.

"On the count of three," Greg let go of his hold of the wall.

"On the count of three," Riley nodded and turned around so they were standing shoulder to shoulder. "Three!"

They hit their shoulders against the pane, as hard as they could. It was cracking. A pattern of breaking glass appeared in front of them.

"Yes!" Riley's heart suddenly filled with hope again. "One more time Greg."

"Can't do it," Greg slumped down, leaning onto the wall. His breaths were short and rapid.

"Okay, you get some rest." Riley drew a sharp breath and took a few steps back. Her eyes were nailed to the pane. It was now or never, she thought. Riley bit her lip and made a short sprint, hitting the window with full force.

TBC

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I hope the fact that Riley took the "center stage" in this chapter could cover her OOC-ness. Please leave me your comment:)


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer : Please refer to chapter one.

A/N: This is the last chapter. Enjoy:)

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== KEN & BARBIE ==

Chapter 3

_For Di, who has shared her 512kbps connection, her cup ramen, and her friendship with me, no matter how annoying I could be._

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The window pane broke apart, sending shards shattering outside and inside. Riley's body stumbled forward, the collision nearly throwing her over the edge. She braced the window frame to break her fall, as the sharp edges of remaining shards cut into her palms. She didn't even wince.

Riley took off her LVPD vest, using it as a makeshift glove to jab at the shards still left in the frame. She looked over the broken window; Curtis's truck was getting closer.

"Okay," She looked down and noticed that there was a porch roof under the window, just about ten feet above the rusty-pipes-filled ground. Some pipes were sticking out from the ground with their sharp edges. They couldn't afford to fall onto more hard surfaces, not with all of Greg's wounds.

She saw cardboard boxes piled under the roof, to the far right corner of the house. "That will do," She muttered to herself.

"Greg, you need to get up. They're getting closer." She kneeled beside Greg, helping him put on her vest. Seeing that the blood was still seeping from the edge of the vest, Riley took off her shirt and tied it around Greg's stomach. "This will reduce your bleeding." She smiled to him.

"How about you? You need the vest and… ugh… the shirt." Greg looked up to her, searching her eyes.

"You don't appreciate this kind of view? I thought you were straight." She averted her eyes from him and gestured at her camisole-clad upper body. "It's clammy in here. I don't need more clothes to warm me up." She smiled as she propped him up, helping him climb through the window.

"You need to walk a bit to the right Greg. Here hold my hand," She instructed while Greg shifted slowly on the roof. The roof was steep and the slates underneath Greg's feet were moving with his every move. "Careful, Greg," Once Greg was secure, she also stepped out.

"See the cardboard pile there? We need to jump onto it." The morning air was cold against Riley's skin. She motioned at the pile with a shaking finger.

"Riley, it's probably ten feet down. We might break a leg, literally." Greg held his stomach while holding onto Riley's shoulder.

Riley stared at him ruefully, "It's better than getting caught, they're coming closer. Come on we can do it."

"Yes, ma'am," Greg smiled mockingly as he stepped closer to the edge.

The sun was appearing on the horizon when they jumped down onto the cardboard boxes. They ducked down to the right when the truck pulled up in front of the house. The engine coughed to a stop.

"Greg we need to hide," Riley practically dragged Greg to the side of a big pipe. His body was limp and his eyes were closed. The only sign of breathing were the rise and fall of his chest.

Riley saw Curtis stepping out of the truck, followed by two men she had never seen before. One of them was muscular with a rifle resting on his hip. The other was a gray haired man, clad in a well-pressed suit and shiny leather shoes, a little out of place among the trash.

"You're keeping the cops in here?" The gray-haired man spoke to Curtis.

"Y…yes Larry." Curtis stuttered. Even from the distance Riley could feel that Curtis was frightened.

"And you and your stupid friend have mentioned my name in front of them?"

Curtis could only nod.

Without warning, Larry slapped Curtis, twice. "You idiot! You made your stupid brother deliver my packages. He lost them and you couldn't get them back. Your stupid friend has been caught by the cops and now you're saying that there are two cops who know my name inside!" His voice was like thunder in the silence of the morning.

"John! Get inside and kill them. Make sure that they die in front of you." Larry ordered the muscular man. "You! Show John where they are!" He kicked Curtis.

"Wait," Larry waved at Curtis, "The guns!"

Curtis handed two guns to Larry before following John inside.

"Greg, we need to go. Once they find out we're gone. They'll get mad! Really mad!" Riley kneeled beside Greg. "You have to get into the truck while I'm distracting that man. It's our only chance" She pointed at Larry while Greg was peering over the pipe. He nodded, weakly.

Riley didn't bother to ask Greg if he was ready. She crawled closer to the truck, getting cover from the piles of trash and pipes. Once she was close enough, she threw a stone to the far right corner of the yard. The stone hit a trash can and made a loud clank.

Larry turned around, searching for the source of such noise. Riley didn't let the chance pass her by. She launched herself onto Larry's back, pinning the man to the ground.

One of the guns slipped away from Larry. Riley tried to reach for it while still pinning Larry down. Her fingers barely brushed the handle when Larry got up, sending her body to the ground.

"Boss, they're running away!" Riley heard John shout.

"I know! Get down here!" Larry straightened himself and threatened Riley with one gun. "Tsk… tsk… tsk…, Curtis didn't tell me that the cop was pretty." He licked his lips.

At that same moment, Riley drew a sharp breath as she heard the truck splutter into life. Greg had made it. Larry, still in shock, didn't have a chance to run away when the truck hit him. The impact sent Larry's body onto one of the piles.

"Riley! Get in," Greg called his friend from behind the wheel.

Not bothering to open the passenger door, Riley climbed through the hatch of the truck, picking a gun from the ground as she went.

Greg hit the gas pedal, but John was already out of the house. Riley saw John's muscular hands moved as he pulled the trigger of the rifle.

Riley ducked down. The first bullet narrowly missed her head, but the second bullet hit the truck's tire. She aimed blindly and released a barrage of bullets in John's direction. "Take that you s..., oww!" She stopped mid-sentence as the truck went crazy.

"Oh shit!" Greg lost control of the wheel. The truck threw Riley out as it zigzagged before hitting a tree. The crash created a loud bang, its sound ringing in Riley's ears and vibrating in her chest. "No, No, Greg!" She screamed. "Greg!" Riley tried to get up, her leg was bleeding and her head was pounding after hitting the hard road. "Greg!" She came to the wrecked side of the truck as fast as she could and yanked the door open.

"Greg! Oh God!" She fell to her knees, covering her face with both hands.

Riley could not contain her tears any longer. There, in the driver seat, Greg's sprawled body was laying still. His eyes closed, his head was on the steering wheel, and the previous contusion was bleeding profusely.

"Greg…" She was helpless; the terror weakened her body to the point where she couldn't get up on her feet. "No… Greg"

'What?" Greg coughed, "You expect me to die?" He raised his head and slowly got out from the truck, blood gushing out from his stomach. "I won't die before knowing your secret." He sat down and leaned against the tree, pressing Riley's shirt harder against his wound. The wound seemed more persistent this time, the blood wouldn't stop flowing.

Riley kept crying, tears flowing down her cheeks, she leaned her forehead to the tree trunk. "I thought you… you…" She stopped herself from saying the word and wrapped one arm around Greg, sobbing pitifully on his shoulder.

"You're an awful shooter ma'am," Suddenly the shadow of a man cast over them. Greg went wide-eyed; John was standing in front of them. The barrel of his rifle trained on the back of Riley's head.

Riley stopped sobbing. Her arm tightened around Greg.

"Of course she's an awful shooter. She hasn't passed the test yet," Greg stated calmly while groping for the gun that he knew Riley was holding.

"Huh?" John stared at him blankly.

"You know, when a cop wants to own a PD-issued gun, she or he needs to pass the proficiency test first." Greg felt the cold metal on his hand. He loosened the gun from Riley's death-grip carefully, eyes still nailed to John and the rifle. He was lucky that Riley's trembling body covered his action.

"I don't care," John was about to pull the trigger.

"Yes you care," Greg hissed, "Because I've passed." With his last word, Greg pulled the trigger of the gun and shot John from below Riley's arm. The bullet hit John square in his third eye. The man slumped onto the side of the car before slouching to the ground.

"It's okay… its okay." He tried to soothe Riley that was starting to cry again before darkness enveloped him.

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Riley quietly slipped in the room restlessly twirling the blue ribbon perched on the fruit basket.

"Oh come on, oranges?" Greg eyed the basket in her hands before reclining onto the pillows. "Everybody has brought me fruits Riley. At least you could have brought me some Mexican food." He waved his IV-hooked hand at various fruit parcels around his bed.

"You… You… want some Mexican," Riley stammered, "There's a cafeteria outside. I think they have Nacho and Guacamole on their menu" She was about to slip out of the hospital room when something hit her back. She turned around and looked down; Greg had thrown a bunched plastic wrapper at her.

"Geez. I'm joking." Greg sneered, "The nurse won't let me have any. It's all porridge for the next weeks. Come in." He retracted his legs and patted the bed.

Riley chose to sit on the bedside chair instead. "How is your wound?" she set the basket and her bag down on the table and leaned closer to see his bandaged abdomen.

"Pretty good; the intestine is healing fast. It was only scratched by the bullet, nothing major." He waved his hand again, dismissing the topic. "How is the investigation?" He asked her while motioning for the oranges. Riley took one of them and started peeling it.

"It seemed like Cody Gable had used the other package for himself. He admitted that the first victim refused to give him the money for the missing package, they fought, and Cody stabbed him." Riley handed him the fruit.

"Zach?" He spoke while munching his first slice.

"Brass caught him at Cody's girlfriend's house. Brass said he was chirpy. It wasn't hard to get the info out of him. That's how PD knew where to find us."

"Hmm mmh" Greg nodded, his mouth still full. "Your question is still unanswered, right?"

"Which question?' She looked at him confusedly.

"You know, why Cody was still at the crime scene after the stabbing?" He motioned for the fruits again.

"You're hungry, aren't you?" she smirked but started to peel another one. "Cody said, it was safer to stay at the warehouse than to meet his brother Curtis or Larry."

"Wow, what a bright thinker." Greg retrieved the second orange from Riley. For a while, there was no other sound but the beeping machine around them.

"I'm sorry." Riley finally broke the silence.

"What for?" Greg answered while still munching.

Riley's answer was a whisper, "It's my fault. We shouldn't have gone back to get my cellphone…"

Greg silenced Riley by glaring at her. "If you wanted to play that way you could also blame me. I'm the one who didn't wait for back up before entering the building. You could also blame the officers that had abandoned their post over coffees and bagels. You could blame Brass, because the officers were his men. You could blame Curtis, Zach, Cody, the stupid rifle-totting John, the… damn the list will be long." He popped in another slice.

"Still I'm sorry," Riley insisted.

"Well, your apology is not accepted. I'm not trading my secret for your regret." He winked at her. "Come on, spill it out. The greatest secret of one Riley Adams"

She handed him a box from her bag instead.

"What's this?" Greg opened a white box, revealing a Barbie inside. He lifted it hesitantly, it was a blonde one, and its hair was straight and long. It was clad in a wedding dress that was smooth and silky and encrusted with beads. "If you think this will entice me to start my own collection, you're so wrong" Greg shook his head.

Riley grinned, "Check the neck."

Greg did as she asked; the Barbie's neck was surrounded by a golden necklace. "Wait, is that a…" He did a second take. It wasn't a necklace, it was a ring, a golden ring; a wedding band.

"Yes, that's a wedding band, my wedding band." Riley's grin formed into a smile when she saw Greg's eyes widen "Used to be my wedding band." She corrected herself. "That's my sappy secret."

"You were married?"

"It was silly actually. I was eighteen. In the spirit of rebellion against my parents, I went to Vegas with my boyfriend." She leaned to the chair. "To cut a long story short, we got drunk and then, we got married."

"Wow," Greg was speechless.

"His rich parents called it off two days after the mayhem. It didn't go onto my or his record. You should see the way their lawyers spoke to my parents, telling my dad to send me to a shrink."

Greg sneered and brushed the ring with his thumb. "Did you buy this for yourself? You seem like a D-I-Y kind of girl." His mind wandered to Sara as he spoke the words.

She playfully punched his arm. "Steve, the groom, had bought it for me. He spent all his available cash for it, all thirty dollars of it. It's a fake"

"A Britney Spears kind of wedding, that's a huge secret."

"Yep." Riley propped her chin with one hand, the other caressed the doll's hair. "Is this Barbie worth your unrequited love story?"

"Hmmm," Greg pursed his lips, feigning a deep thought, "I think it is."

"Good. I keep the Barbie and the ring as a totem of my stupidity." She rose to her feet and gestured to the doll "They're for you."

"To remind me of what? Your stupidity?" Greg looked up in a mocking smile.

Riley smiled back as she slung her bag over her shoulder and slowly moved outside.

"Greggo," She turned back at the threshold.

"Hey!" Still holding the Barbie in his hands, Greg looked up, his lips twitched in a frown. "What have I told you about the name calling?"

"Thank you. For not giving up back there." Riley smiled a smile that she felt was her first genuine smile since she joined the team.

Greg shrugged and waved as she left. He only smiled back after Riley had completely gone out of his sight.

"Don't worry, I'll find you a Ken once we get out of here." He cooed to the blonde Barbie before tucking it beside him. "Goodnight."

+FIN+

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Thank you to Sylvie who could deal with correcting my mistakes and errors without judging. She is so awesome that I can't find a word to thank her appropriately.

Thank you for all the reviews and alerts too; you guys have helped me build my confidence. Now, please find the review button and tell me your opinion:)


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